Why Mister Rogers Is Smarter Than Baby Einstein

I had a parenting moment the other day I know gave me more joy than it did my nearly two-year-old son. I introduced him to the nostalgia of my own childhood—something I’ll do in various ways for years to come, I know. In most cases, not for his sake, but for mine.

However, our moment the other day was for his sake, truly.

Despite the recommendation of the American Academy of Pediatrics that no child under the age of two be exposed to screen time, I sat with Landon in front of the TV for a Saturday morning treat—watching a cartoon together, although this week didn’t star a tomato, a cucumber, or even Mickey Mouse. Instead, I introduced him to my ol’ buddy from years ago, Mister Rogers.

And man, it was awesome! Mister Rogers was teaching us how to behave in a restaurant. He introduced us to the waitress, showed us where to place our napkin, and taught us how to order a drink. Ah, the good ol’ days. (He did this all without looking at his cell phone or taking a #selfie).

Unfortunately, that’s as far as we got. No more than five minutes in Landon looked at me and asked, “Hot Dog?”

Translation: He was bored. He wanted to watch “Hot Dog” (a.k.a. Mickey Mouse) instead. I admit I was a bit bummed. I at least wanted to revisit the Neighborhood of Make-Believe.

So why did I introduce him to Mister Rogers so early?

Well, I love to study research. Forget blogs and people’s opinions. Show me the data behind why I should or shouldn’t do something, and I’ll listen. Which is why my son and I left Mickey Park and traveled to Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood last Saturday. I did it forhis sake.

The primary finding is what’s called the overstimulation hypothesis. That is, prolonged exposure to rapid image changes during a child’s critical period of brain development preconditions their mind to expect high levels of stimulation, which leads to inattention in later life.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t want my children having attention problems because of too much idle screen time. Heaven forbid they can’t go to a restaurant as an adult without a phone as a placemat.

If you think this isn’t a problem, watch a TV episode with your kids and notice how many screen changes happen in a 20-second span. Many people claim that shows like Baby Einstein are an exception, and actually make their kids smarter. Research shows there’s nothing more to this than great marketing.

In fact, when you watch “A Day on the Farm” by Baby Einstein, you’ll average about 7 scene changes in any 20-second clip. Send your kid to school a few years later to study farm animals, and at school, it becomes boring—the lessons are too slow.

In the study I’m referring to here, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood was the only program to show no differences in later attention compared to kids who watched no TV. That’s because it was a show designed to expand a child’s attention by keeping the child focused on face-to-face interaction with one person. The pacing of screen changes for Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood is radically different from other children’s programs, including Sesame Street and Baby Einstein, both of which cater to a child’s shorter attention span by increasing screen changes.

So though your child may be mastering his A,B,C’s a bit quicker than the Jones’ kids next door, what you’re sacrificing are the higher level executive functions of your child’s developing brain—the ability to problem-solve, display behavioral control, regulate emotions, plan, negotiate, and delay gratification—all critical components for both academic and social success.

And if you’re a proponent of iPads for your children, understand that 85 percent of the apps purchased for children are just “drill and practice” apps that solicit children to simply repeat an action or recall simple facts.

Comments

Booster seat needed!!! I took a 3 hour drive with my daughter and their 4 boy and 6 girl year olds. to spend 3 days with their aunt who has 3 children. While we were getting ready gathering things the children sat in the living room with the TV on and each with a Tablet. The oldest even OWNS A SMART PHONE. Getting them to be involved in the packing required. They would do 1 or 2 of a requested task and go back to that tablet. Now the drive down; they were perfect children as stated by their mother. She said these gadgets are the best invention in the world. I would not take a trip more than an hour without them. By the way they only looked out the windows to search eating establishments. On the way back I got the 6 yr girl to use the seat the 4 older was sitting in and modified the seat the sister had in the garage. Long story short better view out the window they would talk to each other about what they saw. Asked questions and gave us adults the chance to share knowledge. 90 minutes into the return trip they both fell asleep. 40 minlatter a voice rang out Google said theirs a KFC and a Burger King close to each other 3 exit away. Those Tablets took my Grandpaw time. Thanks to the Booster seat I assumed some control. Interaction is a lost art. The parents love it.

This is so helpful! Everything in moderation & understanding the WHY and better choices – rather than just “no screen time” which is fine too – but much harder to make happen. My kids are probably too old for Mr Rogers at this point? My youngest is 6. But maybe I’ll try it – he seems to be prone to screen addiction.